Turbulent burst around experimental spur dike

Three-dimensional turbulent flow field was measured around an experimental spur dike by using a micro-acoustic Doppler velocimeter.Time fractions of turbulent burst events including outward interaction,ejection,inward interaction,and sweep were analyzed in each quadrant at the neighbor of the dike before and after the formation of scour hole.Over 80%of burst events near the bed have lower-order of magnitudes for both flat and scoured bed surfaces.Ejections and sweeps are prevalent before the local scour was initiated,and then outward interactions are dominant after the scour hole was formed.Conditional Reynolds stresses and high-order moments of turbulent velocities were analyzed along the thalweg.The magnitudes of u’-w’ pair were much larger than those of v’-vv’ pair in the scour zone.Among four burst events,ejections and sweeps are the higher order events contributing to the Reynolds stresses.Since sediment entrainment and transport are closely associated with turbulent bursts near bed,the development of scour hole greatly depends on the higher order event near the bed.     

IMPACTS OF DIMENSION AND SLOPE OF SUBMERGED SPUR DIKES ON LOCAL SCOUR PROCESSES - AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY

1 INTRODUCTION In alluvial streams bed scour often occurs if the sediment load is less than the transport capacity of the flow. Two types of scour are identified, namely local scour and channel bed scour. Channel bed scour can be further classified accord…     

Experimental study on scour and flow field in a scour hole around a T-shape spur dike in a 90° bend

In this paper results of experimental study on scour and flow field around a T-shape spur dike in a 90 degree channel bend are presented. Experiments were conducted in a laboratory channel to measure the variations of bed topography under a clear water condition. The three dimensional flow field was measured by an Acoustic Doppler Velocimeter in a scour hole due to a T-shape spur dike. It was found that by increasing the Froude number and length of spur dike the amount of scour increases. Increasing the wing length of spur dike decreases the scour. The amount of scour at the upstream of spur dike is much more as compare to that at the downstream of spur dike. By increasing the wing length of spur dike the zone of flow separation expands. As a result the sizes of vortex increase. Details of flow field are also addressed in the paper.     

Scour and flow field around a spur dike in a 90° bend

Spur dike is an important element in fiver training that creates rapid variations in flow field, sediment transport and bed topography. The mechanism of flow and sediment transport in a channel bend is very complex, especially when a spur dike is constructed in a bend. Most of previous investigations on flow behavior and scour around spur dike were carried out in straight channels. In this paper results of experiments on flow field and scour around a spur dike in a 90 degree channel bend are presented, Sand with uniform grain size was used as the bed material, Experiments were conducted for different locations and different lengths of spur dikes at the bend with different values of discharge, The three dimensional flow fields around a spur dike were investigated, The maximum depth of scour was correlated to the Froude numbers, lengths and the locations of spur dike in the bend.     

Scour and flow field around a spur dike in a 90° bend

Spur dike is an important element in river training that creates rapid variations in flow field, sediment transport and bed topography. The mechanism of flow and sediment transport in a channel bend is very complex, especially when a spur dike is constructed in a bend. Most of previous investigations on flow behavior and scour around spur dike were carried out in straight channels. In this paper results of experiments on flow field and scour around a spur dike in a 90 degree channel bend are presented. Sand with uniform grain size was used as the bed material. Experiments were conducted for different locations and different lengths of spur dikes at the bend with different values of discharge. The three dimensional flow fields around a spur dike were investigated. The maximum depth of scour was correlated to the Froude numbers, lengths and the locations of spur dike in the bend.     

EXPERIMENTS ON FLOW AROUND A CYLINDER IN A SCOURED CHANNEL BED

The flow pattern around a cylinder, installed in a scoured channel bed, was experimentally investigated. Detailed measurements of the instantaneous 3D velocities were performed by using an Acoustic Doppler Velocity Profiler (ADVP), from which the profiles of the time-averaged velocities and turbulence stresses were obtained. It is shown that the influence of the cylinder and of the scour hole alters the approach flow; this is essentially confined to the vicinity of the cylinder and to the inside of the scour hole. The horseshoe vortex is measured as a flow reversal inside the scour hole, formed by the downward flow along the cylinder face and the reversed flow at the scour bed.     

Experimental assessment and prediction of temporal scour depth around a spur dike

Spur dikes are river training structures that have been extensively used worldwide for towards enhancing flood control and the stability of embankments and riverbanks.However,scour around spur dikes can be a major problem affecting their stability and hydraulic performance.The precise computation of temporal scour depth at spur dikes is very important for the design of economical and safe spur dikes.This study focuses on experimentally assessing the temporal variation of scour depth around a vertical wall spur dike and identifying the parameters,which mostly influence spur dike performance for a channel bed surface comprised of sand-gravel mixtures.In the current study,the authors did physical experiments in a flume based study to obtain new data,aimed at deriving a new predictive model for spur dike scour and comparing its performance to others found in the literature.It was found that the dimensionless temporal scour depth variation increases with an increase in(i)the threshold velocity ratio,(ii)the densimetric Froude number of the bed surface sediment mixture,(iii)the flow shallowness(defined as the ratio of the approach flow depth,y,to the spur dike’s transverse length,l),and(iv)the flow depth-particle size ratio.It is also concluded that the temporal scour depth variation in the sediment mixture is influenced by the non-uniformity of sediment and decreases with an increase in the non-uniformity of the sediment mixture.A new mathematical model is derived for the estimation of temporal scour depths in sand-gravel sediment mixtures.The proposed equation has been calibrated and validated with the experimental data,demonstrating a good predictive capacity for the estimation of temporal scour depth evolution.     

FLOW FIELD IN SCOURED ZONE OF CHANNEL CONTRACTIONS

Experiments were conducted in a laboratory flume to measure the two-dimensional turbulent flow field in the scoured zone of channel contractions under a clear-water scour condition. The Acoustic Doppler Velocimeter (ADV) was used to detect the flow field at different vertical lines along the centerline of uncontracted (main channel) and contracted zones of the channel. The distributions of time-averaged velocity components, turbulent intensity, turbulent kinetic energy, and Reynolds stresses are presented in nondimensional graphical form. The bed shear stresses are computed from the measured Reynolds stresses being in threshold condition within the zone of contraction where bed was scoured. The data presented in this paper would be useful to the investigators for the development of kinematic flow model and morphological model of scour at a channel or river contraction.     

Experiment and simulation of turbulent flow in local scour around a spur dyke

The turbulent flow in the local scour hole around a single non-submerged spur dyke is investigated with both experimental and numerical methods. The experiments are conducted under clear-water scour regime with an impermeable spur dyke. The scour geometry and flow velocities are measured in details with a high-resolution laser displacement meter, electro-magnetic velocimetries and PIV （Particle image velocimetry）. A 3D non-linear k-ε model is developed to simulate the complex local flow field around the scour area. The numerical model is formulated using FVM （Finite volume method） on a collocated unstructured mesh, capable of resolving complex geometries and boundaries. It is found that the simulation results are reasonably consistent with those of the experimental measurements. Based on the study results, the nature of the flow structure around a spur dyke with local scour hole is analyzed.     

EXPERIMENTS ON FLOW AROUND A CYLINDER IN A SCOURED CRANNEL BED

1 INTRODUCTION'LOcal scour around a pier is a result of the interatiOn amongst the pier, the aPproach flow and theerodible bed. The Presence of a pier results in a stagnation pressure build-up in front of the pier and athree-dimensional tUrbulent flow echaracterized by the downward flow ahead of the pier and the so-called horseshoe vortex along the base of the Pier forms itself The flow modifies the erothe bed inthe vicinity of the pier when local scour takes place (Graf and AJhnakar l…     

Bed scour by debris flows: experimental investigation of effects of debris‐flow composition

Debris flows can grow greatly in size by entrainment of bed material, enhancing their runout and hazardous impact. Here, we experimentally investigate the effects of debris‐flow composition on the amount and spatial patterns of bed scour and erosion downstream of a fixed to erodible bed transition. The experimental debris flows were observed to entrain bed particles both grain by grain and en masse, and the majority of entrainment was observed to occur during passage of the flow front. The spatial bed scour patterns are highly variable, but large‐scale patterns are largely similar over 22.5–35° channel slopes for debris flows of similar composition. Scour depth is generally largest slightly downstream of the fixed to erodible bed transition, except for clay‐rich debris flows, which cause a relatively uniform scour pattern. The spatial variability in the scour depth decreases with increasing water, gravel (= grain size) and clay fraction. Basal scour depth increases with channel slope, flow velocity, flow depth, discharge and shear stress in our experiments, whereas there is no correlation with grain collisional stress. The strongest correlation is between basal scour and shear stress and discharge. There are substantial differences in the scour caused by different types of debris flows. In general, mean and maximum scour depths become larger with increasing water fraction and grain size, and decrease with increasing clay content. However, the erodibility of coarse‐grained experimental debris flows (gravel fraction = 0.64) is similar on a wide range of channel slopes, flow depths, flow velocities, discharges and shear stresses. This probably relates to the relatively large influence of grain‐collisional stress to the total bed stress in these flows (30–50%). The relative effect of grain‐collisional stress is low in the other experimental debris flows (<5%), causing erosion to be largely controlled by basal shear stress. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Experiments on the morphological controls of velocity inversions in bedrock canyons

A better understanding of bedrock incision mechanisms and processes is essential to the study of long‐term landscape evolution. Yet, little is known about flow dynamics in bedrock rivers, limiting our ability to make realistic predictions of local bedrock incision rates. A recent investigation of flow through bedrock canyons of the Fraser River revealed that plunging flows, defined by the downward‐directed movement of near surface flow toward the channel bed, occur in channels that have low width‐to‐depth ratios. Plunging flows occur into deep scour pools, which are often coincident with lateral constrictions and channel spanning submerged ridges (sills). A phenomenological investigation was undertaken to reproduce the flow fields observed in the Fraser canyons and to explore morphological controls on the occurrence and relative strength of plunging flow in bedrock canyons. Our observations show that the plunging flow structure can be produced along a scour pool entrance slope by accelerating the flow at the canyon entrance either over submerged sills or through lateral constrictions. Plunging flow appears to be a function of convective deceleration into a scour pool which can be enhanced by sill height, the amount of the channel width that is constricted, pool entrance slope, discharge, and a reduction in channel width‐to‐depth ratio. Plunging flow greatly enhances the potential for incision to occur along the channel bed and is an extreme departure from the assumptions of steady, uniform flow in bedrock incision models, highlighting the need for improved formulations that account for fluid flow. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Secondary flow in anabranch confluences of a braided,gravel-bed stream

Measurements of the primary and secondary velocity components were máde in two, active, braided river anabranch confluences with a simple Y-shaped plan form, in the gravelly Sunwapta River (D₅₀ of approximately 30 mm). Flow velocity was measured at regularly-spaced intervals using a bidirectional electromagnetic current meter and the measured downstream and cross-stream velocities were converted to primary and secondary velocities to yield the secondary circulation. The primary (downstream) velocity field shows two high velocity streams from the two tributaries which merge (and, in some cases, accelerate) into a single high velocity core over the thalweg. Primary flow velocity declines as the flow expands and diverges at the downstream end of the confluence. The secondary circulation is dominated by two helical cells, back-to-back, plunging over the thalweg and diverging at the bed. This is the first confirmation of this flow structure in confluences, based on field measurements. The strength of the secondary cells declines downstream through each confluence, and laterally away from the thalweg area in cross-section. There is also a tendency for one cell, from the larger of the tributaries, to override the other. The secondary and primary flow structure and strength differs slightly between the two confluences and this is reflected in differences in scour hole form.     

Flow fields around tandem and staggered piers on a mobile bed

An experimental investigation on flow fields within the scour holes upstream and downstream of circular piers positioned in tandem and staggered arrangements is reported and compared with isolated piers on mobile beds with uniform sediment. The instantaneous bed elevations and instantaneous three dimensional (3D) velocities were measured using a 5 MHz Ultrasonic Ranging system and 16 MHz micro down looking acoustic Doppler velocimeter, respectively. The velocity and flow depth were measured at different locations under near equilibrium bed scour conditions. The measured 3D velocities were processed for the computation of flow parameters, such as velocity fields, streamline patterns, vorticity fields, and circulation. Furthermore, turbulence intensities, turbulent kinetic energy, Reynolds shear stresses, and bed shear stresses around the piers for all three pier configurations were computed from the detrended velocity signals to identify significant differences in the flow parameters and turbulence in the tandem and staggered pier arrangements as compared to those for an isolated pier. A recirculation zone was found near the bed in front of the rear pier in the tandem case from the streamline patterns. The vortices in the bi-vortex system were observed to be opposite to each other in the gap between the three piers in the staggered case. A strong secondary vortex also was observed apart from the primary vortex at the foot of the pier (θ = 0°) in all the three configurations. The strength of the horseshoe vortex (combination of primary and secondary vortices) was found to be higher at the front piers of the staggered arrangement as compared to those of the tandem piers, followed by the isolated pier. The bed shear stresses were found to be higher for the staggered piers than for the tandem piers in the direction of flow (θ = 0°). However, a 50% reduction in the bed shear stresses was observed behind the tandem piers at θ = 180°. The study reported in this paper provides the foundation for further investigation of countermeasures against local scour around tandem and staggered bridge piers on a mobile bed with non-uniform sediment.     

Effects of submerged flexible vegetation and solid structure bars on channel bed scour

The effects of different submerged obstacle longitudinal bars with different arrangement densities on the flow profile and morphology of a scour hole were investigated under clear water conditions. Acoustic Doppler velocimetry(ADV) data were applied to plot the vertical distributions of three-dimensional velocities and turbulent contours.The experimental results indicate that arrangement density(also can represent porosity),structural material(flexible or solid),and the sidewall effect are the main factors impacting turbulent kinetic energy and the morphology of scour holes.For flexible vegetation,the maximum turbulent kinetic energy near the bed surface increased with the arrangement density.For the same structure,the depth and the magnitude of the lateral expansion of the scour hole also increased with the arrangement density.The flexible vegetation reduced the depth of the scour hole because of deflection and arrangement density.The larger volumes of scour found in the upstream and middle sections of solid structures compare well to those in flexible vegetation.The deflection of porous flexible vegetation transported the turbulent kinetic energy downstream,reduced the turbulent kinetic energy near the sediment bed,and increased the stability of the bars.Flexible vegetation bars are able to protect the bank and the bed of a river under normal conditions,making them a good alternative design in the management and restoration of rivers.     

Reduction of bend scour with an air-bubble screen-morphology and flow patterns

The interplay between streamwise flow,curvature-induced secondary flow,sediment transport and bed morphology leads to the formation of a typical bar-pool bed morphology in open-channel bends.The associated scour at the outer bank and deposition at the inner bank may endanger the outer bank’s stability or reduce the navigable width of the channel.Previous preliminary laboratory experiments in a sharply curved flume with a fixed horizontal bed have shown that a bubble screen located near the outer bank can generate an additional secondary flow located between the outer bank and the curvature-induced secondary flow and with a sense of rotation opposite to the latter.This bubble-induced secondary flow redistributes velocities and bed shear stresses.The reported study investigates the implications of a bubble screen on the flow and the morphology in configurations with mobile bed.Velocity measurements show that the bubble-induced secondary flow shifts the curvature-induced secondary flow in inwards direction and reduces its strength.The bubble screen considerably reduces morphological gradients.Maximum bend scour is reduced by about 50%and occurs further away from the outer bank where it does not endanger the bank stability anymore.The location of maximum scour coincides with the junction of the curvature-induced and bubble-induced secondary flows.At this same location,the maximum streamwise velocities and maximum vertical velocities impinging on the bed also occur,which indicates their importance with respect to the formation of bend scour.The bubble screen also substantially reduced deposition at the inner bank.These preliminary experiments show the potential of a bubble screen to influence and modify the bed morphology.     

Modelling time varying scouring at bed sills

In this paper a modelling approach is presented to predict local scour under time varying flow conditions. The approach is validated using experimental data of unsteady scour at bed sills. The model is based on a number of hypotheses concerning the characteristics of the flow hydrograph, the temporal evolution of the scour and the geometry of the scour hole. A key assumption is that, at any time, the scour depth evolves at the same rate as in an equivalent steady flow. The assumption is supported by existing evidence of geometrical affinity and similarity of scour holes formed under different steady hydraulic conditions. Experimental data are presented that show the scour hole development downstream of bed sills due to flood hydrographs follow a predictable pattern. Numerical simulations are performed with the same input parameters used in the experimental tests but with no post‐simulation calibration. Comparison between the experimental and model results indicates good correspondence, especially in the rising limb of the flow hydrograph. This suggests that the underlying assumptions used in the modelling approach are appropriate. In principle, the approach is general and can be applied to a wide range of environments (e.g. bed sills, step‐pool systems) in which scouring at rapid bed elevation changes caused by time varying flows occurs, provided appropriate scaling information is available, and the scour response to steady flow conditions can be estimated. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Spatial variability of three‐dimensional Reynolds stresses in a developing channel bend

Experimental results of the mean flow field and turbulence characteristics for flow in a model channel bend with a mobile sand bed are presented. Acoustic Doppler velocimeters (ADVs) were used to measure the three components of instantaneous velocities at multiple cross sections in a 135° channel bend for two separate experiments at different stages of clear water scour conditions. With measurements at multiple cross sections through the bend it was possible to map the changes in both the spatial distribution of the mean velocity field and the three Reynolds shear stresses. Turbulent stresses are known to contribute to sediment transport and the three‐dimensionality inherent to flow in open channel bends presents a useful case for determining specific relations between three‐dimensional turbulence and sediment entrainment and transport. These measurements will also provide the necessary data for validating numerical simulations of turbulent flow and sediment transport. The results show that the magnitude and distribution of three‐dimensional Reynolds stresses increase through the bend, with streamwise‐cross stream and cross stream‐vertical components exceeding the maximum principal Reynolds stress through the bend. The most intriguing observation is that near‐bed maximum positive streamwise‐cross stream Reynolds stress coincides with the leading edge of the outer bank scour hole (or thalweg), while maximum cross stream‐vertical Reynolds stress (in combination with high negative streamwise‐cross stream Reynolds stress near the bend apex) coincides with the leading edge of the inner bank bar. Maximum Reynolds stress and average turbulent kinetic energy appear to be greater and more localized over the scour hole before final equilibrium scour is reached. This suggests that the turbulent energy in the flow is higher while the channel bed is developing, and both lower turbulent energy and a broader distribution of turbulent stresses near the bed are required for cessation of particle mobilization and transport. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATIONS AND NUMERICAL SIMULATIONS OF REDUCING SECONDARY FLOWS AROUND A SPUR DIKE

1 INTRODUCTION The Yangtze River at the Three Gorges Project (TGP) site meanders with a complex morphology, including ridges like Jiuling Hill that projects into the approach navigation channel (Fig. 1). The approach navigation channel consists of a 530-m…     

Countermeasure of river bend scour using a combination of submerged vanes and riprap

A series of laboratory flume experiments were done in a large-scale 180° bend with non-cohesive sediment to find optimal or effective protection works at a bend. Detailed study of the scour and flow field dynamics with and without protection works was done. Spatially dense, high frequency velocity data were collected and analyzed to describe the pattern and magnitude of three-dimensional(3 D)velocity throughout the bend. Characterizing the role of flow field dynamics on the pattern of deposition and erosion through experimental measurements provided valuable data about how such flow features contribute to scour and about the performance of the protection works. From the experimental results, it is revealed that for a perennial river it is not possible to protect from scour either with riprap or with submerged vanes alone. Protection from scour at a bend can be achieved with proper combination of these two works. First, submerged vanes can protect the toe, and, second, riprap can protect the upper part of the slope if it is not damaged through toe erosion. The experiments convincingly demonstrate the efficiency of this bank protection technique.